Worthy
by BoxFullofCats
Summary: No one takes Thor's word that you need to be worthy to wield Mjolnir. (Semi-spoilers for Age of Ultron - see notes inside)


Notes: Sorta, semi, maybe spoilers for Age of Ultron. There's a few direct quotes I used found on io9 titled "_Avengers: Age of Ultron_ Footage Shatters Our Worlds And Blows Our Minds". Fic is based off the scene show at SDCC - which I have _not_ seen. I've also been sitting on this for months, so if anything new about this scene has come out my fic was written well before that. Semi-unbeta'd.

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><p>The party was winding down. It was practically over actually. All that remained was the group loosely known as the Avengers. And associates.<p>

Maria was chatting with Jane and Natasha on the other side of Thor, at the farthest end of that section of the sofa. Tony could hear Jane rave about some new discovery or some such. She had already talked things over with Bruce. Tony, too, if you wanted to get technical, except he had zoned out after a while busy with his own project. It was a brilliant theory, he would have to remember to give her a few pointers.

Pepper wasn't there, as she actually was doing her job and being a responsible adult running Stark Industries. And she did it well, if Tony was one to brag. Which he was, and did so frequently.

Thor came over from getting himself a drink, sparing an admiring look to the astrophysicist, before setting his magical hammer down. Right on the glass top coffee table.

"That better not break my table, Val Hallen," Tony warned.

Thor gave him a confused look, opening his mouth to no doubt correct him.

Tony interrupted before he could. "Kid show, from the nineties." He waved the comment off. "Ask Cap, I'm sure he'll be able to fill you in."

The living myth shrugged the comment off and took a sip of his drink.

"So, uh," Rhodey began, "what do those markings mean on your hammer."

Sitting back in the leather sofa, Thor smiled. "It says whosoever is worthy may wield Mjolnir."

"Worthy?" Bruce asked. "How do you determine if someone is worthy?"

Thor laughed, "I do not decide who is worthy or not. Mjolnir does."

"A hammer cannot decide if someone is worthy. It doesn't have sentience," Bruce explained.

"It's magic," Thor replied, barely keeping a smirk at bay, as if that was the answer to end all.

Steve raised an eyebrow. "So it's some kind of trick?"

"Used to see stuff like this at the circus. Magnets and stuff," Clint offered from his perch on the back of a sofa.

"Except my table isn't magnetized," Tony grumbled. He approached it, looking the hammer over. "If I lift it, do I get to rule Asgard?"

Thor couldn't help hide his smirk this time. "Yes." Still smirking, he took another sip of his drink.

"I promise I will be a fair, but firm ruler and will reconsider the wench laws." With a shake of his arms, as if to loosen up, Tony reached down and placed a two handed grip on the handle. He pulled up and the hammer didn't budge. Spreading his feet a little wider, he pulled harder. Still nothing.

"Heavier than it looks," Tony commented as he walk away and came back with a gauntlet from an Iron Man suit. It clicked and whirred into place before the faint humming noise came one, indicating the gauntlet was fully powered.

"This'll do the trick," Tony shot his companions, who had been silent as they watched him, a cocky grin.

With his gauntlet hand he tried again. There may have been a snicker from Clint or Rhodey, he wasn't sure. In any case it still didn't move. "Need god like strength to lift it, so one man isn't going to do it." Tony turned around and waved Rhodey over. "Come over here buddy."

The colonel looked ready to protest before letting out a sigh of resignation. Giving Tony look he reached down and grabbed the handle. "Put your back into it, old man," Rhodey teased, to which Steve laughed.

"Quiet from the peanut gallery," Tony snarked and grabbed the handle again.

Both men pulled, they lifted with their legs, yanked, and one of them groaned, "Oh, god, c'mon you stupid hammer." Nothing worked.

Finally they give up as Thor laughed, finding it all very entertaining. Maria gave one look to their antics before returning her full attention back to Jane and Natasha.

Tony, obviously upset challenged Clint, when the archer sniggered. "Let's see what you can do, Katniss."

Clint shrugged, not even batting his eye at the nickname, and got off his perch. Quietly he eyed Thor, then Tony. "This is going to blow up in my face, I know it." With one last look at Tasha across the room, he reached down and grabbed the handle, one-handed. He gave it a few tugs, then gripped it with two hands. Just like with Tony and Rhodey, the hammer didn't move.

"Looks like Legolas is best sticking with his sticks."

"Arrows," Clint corrected Tony.

"Nuance," the inventor quipped. "You're up Bruce."

"Do I really have to?" Bruce grumbled, sounding like a begrudge teenager.

"Everyone is having a go, c'mon," Tony replied, waving is hand to summon his friend.

Bruce vacillated, as Tony tried to goad him on or bribe him with new equipment.

Even Thor encouraged him. "It does not hurt to try, Dr. Banner. See if you are worthy to lift Mjolnir."

Finally Bruce gave in. At first the guys kind of chuckled at him not be able to lift it. Then Bruce kept trying, and trying, and growing frustrated and . . . angry. His skin and eyes began to take on a tint of green, and they all started to look around at each other. Even Natasha, Maria and Jane paused in their conversation to see what was going to happen. Jane looked ready to bolt if given the word, and Maria looked ready to escort her out.

"Jarvis, I'm going to need-" Tony started when Steve stood.

Placing a gentle hand on Bruce's shoulder he asked, "May I have a turn?"

Bruce's head whipped around to Steve, he emitted a low growl. Steve didn't budge. He tried to take deep, calming breaths and hoped the good doctor would imitate him. Finally, slowly, Bruce's fingers unwrapped from around the hilt. He gave Steve a nod and went to sit back down.

The tension in the room dropped by leaps and bounds.

"You think you're worthy, Steve?" Thor grinned.

Steve just shrugged. "Worth a shot to see." No sooner does the good captain start to try and pull it up that a faint screech noise is heard. Thor looks concerned, his eyes darting quickly between Steve and Mjolnir, Tony is ready to drop his jaw, while the rest hold their breath in anticipation.

There is one more grinding noise of metal on glass before Steve gives up. "That thing is not going anywhere," Steve conceded.

"Hey Tasha," Clint calls to his partner, "Want to see if you can pick up the hammer?"

The women stop their conversation as the flame haired assassin turned around. With her expression giving nothing away she replied, "That is a question I don't need answered." Natasha turned back around, signaling the end of her involvement, and returned to her conversation with Maria and Jane.

Tony was not giving up though. "All right, Fix-It Felix, I'll let you have your fun. Though I bet I can tell you why no one else besides you can lift it." The inventor started to walk around, as if he was a professor addressing a class.

"As you've explained to me, and Bruce, that your 'magic' is really science. Clearly the answer to why no one else can lift it is not because of it magically choosing who can pick up that rock, but that it's keyed to your fingerprints on the hilt." He shook his head at that. "No, too low-tech for you pseudo-gods. I'm guessing something to do with advance biometrics."

The God of Thunder sat there for a moment, as if he was seriously considering Tony's explanation before he started to laugh. The billionaire was not amused.

"The answer is far simpler, my friend: none of you are worthy." Thor adopted a ridiculous grin on his face as Tony scowled at him and the hammer.

"Oh! Let me show you!" Jane exclaimed, interrupting the stare down, as she bounced up out of her seat, her energy could immediately be felt by all – even if they had no idea what she was excited about.

Tucking her hair behind her ear she scanned her surroundings. She spun around once before spying what she was looking for. "Now where did I put those – ah! There it is!"

Without a second thought she grabbed the hammer, picked it up as if it was a feather, grabbed the papers under it, and put it back down. She returned to her seat, already going on about what was on the papers while everyone stared at her. Tony's jaw finally dropped.

Thor just smirked, looking very proud, his chest even puffed out a bit. "She, however, is worthy."


End file.
